In the art of fishing, it is known to use screening devices to trap organisms in water for inspection purposes. U.S. Pat. No. 4,055,087 to Carie shows such a device. In Carie, the organisms are generally counted or sampled to monitor aquatic life depletion. U.S. Pat. No. 3,803,743 to Nalepka discloses a screened minnow dipper that facilitates catching and baiting the minnow for fishing. U.S. Pat. No. 4,399,629 to Duncan discloses an apparatus for collecting plankton.
In the art of trout fishing, it is well known that trout are very attracted to aquatic insects regardless of their stage of development. Typically, these stages entail egg, larva, pupa, and adult. The eggs are generally laid in the water, and after hatching, larvae/pupae move about in the water, including rising to the surface and become food for the trout. While the trout will feed on any form, between the pupae and larvae, the pupae is more attractive since it is more noticeable to the fish. In conjunction with these various forms of aquatic insect, the trout fisherman has an assortment of flies, which imitate the aquatic insect form. For example, a nymph fly is used that is an artificial creation of a specific and natural aquatic insect form. Generally, “nymph” is used as a generic description covering larvae, pupae, mayfly nymphs, crustaceans, girdle bugs, etc. The flies can be dressed to float on the surface, i.e., dry flies, or designed to sink below the surface at a certain depth to represent a hatching fly emerging from the depths of the water.
One particular type of aquatic insect is the caddis fly, which is also known as a sedge. The caddis develops through the egg, larvae, pupae and adult stages, and all stages could be imitated using fly patterns to catch trout.
It is also known for fishing that if you know what the fish are currently eating at the time of your fishing trip, you can advantageous select the right kind of bait or lure. In some instances, fishermen pump the stomachs of trout that have been caught to determine what insects or organisms have been eaten by the trout.
If the fisherman has not caught any fish, the stomach pumping technique described above cannot be practiced, and the fisherman is still left without an indication of what the fish are eating during a particular fishing trip. This technique also does not provide information as to what depth the fish may be eating. The patents discussed above provide no advantages to the fisherman in terms of what baits, lures, or the like may be suitable for current fishing conditions.
As such, a need exists for methods and devices that inform the fisherman of current fishing conditions so that the proper fishing lures/bait can be employed.